Chasing the Devil

08: Stairs, Barracks, and a Throne

9

JUL/17

Continuing up the stairs, the party reaches another obstruction in the stairway and are forced on to a floor. They find a hallway leading across the keep to the interior wall. The only trouble is that it's a hall way with lots of doors and sounds of occupation.

Creeping forward, Emtree peeks in the door just in time for a cambien to turn around and see her. She darts forward and attacks.

The rest of the party move quickly to subdue him, and crowd into his chamber slamming the door behind them. The battle didn't draw the attention of the rest of the guards in the hallway, but slamming the door did.

Rapture then implemented the plan the rest of the party was formulating before Emtree rushed forward. Prospero created a set of wings for the Tiefling, and Rapture manages to convince the curious Cambiens down the hall that nothing was the matter.

With the guards taken care of, the party manages to get a short rest for the first time since entering the keep.

Continuing on, the heroes continue to the inside wall of the keep, then continue to another corridor that leads back to a second set of stairs. The party starts climbing.

They finally reach the 17th floor, which is guarded by a small group of devils and Cambiens. Trying to avoid the fight, they backtrack, and go around to another set of stairs, and climb back up to 17th floor, finding another group guards. Something up there needs to be guarded.

Employing the same trick, Prospero gives Rapture some wings and Rapture bluffs most of the guards to follow her down the stairs where the party is waiting to ambush them. The battle is short.

The party finally reaches the 20th floor. It's a wide open expanse of a floor in a building shaped like a donut. On the other side of the floor, the party finds a large door with a trap door to the roof, guarded by more imps. With more illusions by Prospero and Emtree, Prospero and Rapture convince the imps to leave the guarding to them.

Deciding it is finally time to check the stone from the succubus, Prospero dips it into some of the goblin blood. The blood covers the stone briefly, then absorbs into the stone. "Anyone bleeding?" he asks. Emtree walks up, and wipes her hand on the stone. A rush of cold overtakes her, and a wave of sickness passes. There's a little wobble in her step but she quickly recovers and otherwise feels fine, though there's something missing.

Watching this, there's a flash of realization in Prospero's eyes, but he doesn't say anything.

The doors lead to a side tower hanging off the side of the keep. Cael and Emtree climb up the ladder to roof, and peek in a window of the tower. Inside, they see what looks like an Ice devil, more cambiens and imps, a grey entity in humanoid form, chain devils, and atop a raised throne, and small imp which could only be Moloch.